PHARMANIAGA Bhd has rejected Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin’s claim that a Pfizer-BioNTech booster would increase the level of protection against new virus variants like Omicron, especially for those who have been vaccinated with the Sinovac vaccine.

The minister had in November said the Pfizer booster “is the best choice”.

The Edge Market reported that the pharmaceutical company, which is the country’s sole distributor of Sinovac vaccine, had pointed out that a study conducted by Yale University showed that two doses of Sinovac vaccine with a Pfizer booster dose “are less effective and produces a lower immune response against the Omicron variant compared with other strains”.

Pharmaniaga further stated research done by the Dominican Republic’s Health Ministry and other institutions had shown that the primary double doses of Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine with the booster shot of Pfizer produced an antibody response similar to a two-dose mRNA vaccine.

The company then cited a separate research by the producers of the Chinese vaccine, Sinovac Biotech Ltd, that reportedly showed three doses of Sinovac Covid vaccine produced higher neutralising antibodies in 95% of recipients compared with 3.3% by the second dose against a variant of concern, including Omicron.

Based on these findings, getting a Sinovac Covid booster is highly recommended for those who have completed their primary vaccination.

The company said recipients staying with Sinovac would be better protected by creating an antibody response, especially against severe disease.

Khairy in a tweet on November 16 last year had stated that “for Sinovac recipients, a Pfizer booster is the best choice to increase your level of protection”.

On Monday, Khairy said that all Sinovac Covid vaccine recipients were now allowed to choose the same brand as their booster shot.

He said this was allowed to address hesitancy against the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines.

“I want to announce today that there are 3.5 million vaccine recipients who had Sinovac as their primary doses who have yet to get their booster shot.”

“This is a huge number and all of them are vulnerable to the Omicron wave because Sinovac’s effectiveness is not as good as Pfizer’s.

“That is why we have made a decision to allow Sinovac recipients to choose the Sinovac booster. He went on to add that the health ministry still encourages them to get Pfizer or AstraZeneca.

“Because any booster is better than no booster at all,” Khairy had said. – February 10, 2022.